Emily Allen
Published: February 11, 2008

Dubuque - Nicole Hayden, a junior at Loras College, was one of millions who gathered in Washington D.C. on January 20, 2009.

“I didn’t have a view of Obama when he was speaking but I could hear the word. I couldn’t see everybody that was sitting up there, but I knew what was going on and I was surrounded by literally two million people all there for the same reason,” says Hayden.

Hayden and her twenty-four J-Term classmates, gathered to witness the Presidential Inauguration, but for her it was not just any inauguration.

“I worked on the Obama campaign for half a semester, being able to finish that process and see it actually happen, and seeing the inauguration was just something that I couldn’t imagine missing out on,” she says.

While Hayden and her classmates were in Washington D.C., other J-Term students were 4,000 miles away in Germany. There, Loras College senior, Scott Frank was focusing on a dimmer past.

“The holocaust has always sparked my interest. It’s just one of those things that you talk about and you are just like ‘how could this happen’,” says Frank.

Frank, along with twelve other Loras students, were documenting the holocaust and remembering the past.

“It’s just one of those things where if I could understand it better I think I could teach my students to understand it better and therefore everyone can have a better comprehension of it,” says Frank, who is a history major.

Frank plans on sharing his experience with future and Hayden plans on sharing her story as well.

“I look forward to telling my kids and grandkids about it. I think that’s probably when it’s going to be most exciting to me,” says Hayden.

For both Hayden and Frank, their J-Terms were not just a trip or a moment in history, but an opportunity that changed their lives.

“When this hard stuff came it hit us in ways that we couldn’t have expected and I think we’re all better for it,” says Frank.

To learn more about all of the different courses, you can attend the J-Term showcase during Common Time on February 18.

Emily Allen can be reached at emily.allen@loras.edu

Abhishek Agarwal
Published: February, 10, 2009

DUBUQUE - Her name is Mishereen Ellis.

“Misherine has been a delight and a real asset to have here at the college,” says Alejandro Pino.

She is the project coordinator between the admissions and intercultural office.

“I think Misherine brings new blood to the college; in terms of new ideas,” says Alejandro Pino.

One of those ideas was the first minority overnight student visits.

“One of my goals is to increase the amount of minority students, domestic and international,” says Ellis.

That’s because she believes in the college’s push for diversity.

“They recognize what a richness that diversity can bring to a community whether it’s the Loras or Dubuque community as a whole,” says Ellis.

That diversity is present in the activities she organizes.

“She’s help organize and plan various months throughout the academic year such as women’s history month, Native American history month, as well as black history month; so she has done a lot of events,” said Alejandro Pino.

It’s all in an effort to prepare students for a life after Loras.

“The more diverse campus we have, the more students are able to learn from each other, the better prepared they are for the real world,” says Ellis.

Abhishek Agarwal can be reached at Abhishek.Agarwal@loras.edu

DUBUQUE - Sara Medieros has been playing softball since before she could read, and she was still playing as a Duhawk when she received some life-altering news last spring. The announcement that she was pregnant at the end of last season surprised everyone, including her head coach.

“It was very shocking,” said Coach Koopman, “I didn’t really know that she wasn’t feeling very well or anything. She didn’t let me see that part of her”

Sara was concerned her softball career was over for good, but Koopman assured her it didn’t have to end.

“She sat me down and was like ‘we’ll work this out, we’ll figure something out.’ And so I went to practice and they kind of pulled me out of any drills where I could get nailed with a ball or anything and I just was like ‘I’m going to make it work’,” the Loras senior recalled.

By November, Sara was forced to take some time off. Four weeks later she was given an early Christmas present with the birth of her child, Mya Elizabeth on December 24^th.

Six weeks later, practice began and Sara was back on the field, same as always. The mother of one was happy to be playing the game she loved, but she realized she couldn’t have done it without a little help from the people around her.

“I’ve had a lot of help from all my different communities that I’m a part of. I’ve had a lot of support from my softball team; I mean there’s not been one person who hasn’t helped me out in some way or another.”

So maybe the old adage is true. Maybe it does take a village to raise a child, or in Sara and Mya’s case, maybe just a softball team.

Katrina Berning can be reached at Katrina.Berning@loras.edu

April is Stress Awareness Month because taxes are due, but tax payers aren’t the only ones dealing with stress this spring. From the Boulevard took a deeper look at stress and how it is effecting students.

Spring a time for new beginnings, new life, and the continuation of school; but for students like Loras sophomore Allison Aerts, it means more work and less time.

“Stress is defiantly a big priority in my life. It just seems like there is not enough hours in the day,” says Allison.

Psychologist Michael Boyd explains why the month of April places so much stress on students. “At the end of the first quarter in the spring semester students are pretty worn out and then they are facing lots of papers lots of projects lots of tests that they have to take.” 

 It is that work students like Allison get districted from and procrastinate on causing more stress and unhealthy lifestyle choices.

“There are times when I just get so overwhelmed that all I want is junk food and a soda but most of the time I am one to eat healthy,” says Allison.

Not only eating healthy but exercising as well, which is something Mike believes everyone needs to make time for. 

But for Allison, exercising is something she already makes time for, “Going and running on the treadmill for 20 min half hour or just lifting some weights for half an hour just really relaxes me.” 

Relaxation gives students a break from their work, clears their mind, and helps Allison complete her work.

Emily Allen can be reached at Emily.Allen@loras.edu